Some days, you catch the up swing

Well, after last Sunday's struggles with the buses and the children's programs, I didn't know what to expect coming into this week. I'd been out to visit the driver who missed, and our songleader who's been absent, but didn't know what would come of both visits.

Attendance in my adult S.S. class was low last week, too, and so was Sunday night attendance.

This week, we had a guest piano player here for both services, an old friend of the pastor's. She has been blind from birth, but is a truly remarkable pianist. We were also scheduled to have a missionary with us tonight. With guest music and guest speakers, you never know what to expect from the services. My choir was going to be very shorthanded, but two people I thought weren't going to be able to sing (my best tenor and his wife, my best alto) did manage.

Well, this morning, there was a solid turnout for the adult S.S., even with some regulars still missing. The buses came in, and the children's classes were jammed. The music mostly went well, and the service went superbly, with a good response to both message and music. The bus driver showed up, and the songleader even came to the morning service.

Tonight, we showed up for music practices, and all went pretty well -- with this guest piano player, we managed a pretty good variety of music tonight. But as the evening service approached, the missionary hadn't shown up, even 15 minutes before the service. At about three minutes before the service, the pastor came up to me and let me know that he'd caught the missionary on the phone, and found out that due to a scheduling mixup, he wasn't coming, and I was preaching.

Fortunately, I've been keeping a sermon in my Bible. With pastor's health difficulties, I never know when he might start a service, but not be able to preach.

Considering the circumstances, the service went well, and a family who has been attending for a while came forward to join the church. He would love to work with the children's ministry, and she wants to sing in the choir! Woohoo!

Now, tomorrow, there's a preacher's fellowship at the church, and apparently at this get-together, the moderator can call on any preacher in the audience to give a short sermon. Guess I'd better have something ready, even though I'd just as soon not give another impromptu message.